Its hard to sum up our visual experience in South Georgia. The alternating views of sandy, lush, rocky and frozen mountainous landscapes, observing a colony of several hundred thousand penguins and watching different whale and seal species are hard to adequately describe. The South Georgia areas we visited are isolated from human occupants and only reachable by boat or, in some locations, small plane.
Such expeditions are the result of a well-planned strategy developed between the ship captain, the expedition leader and the expedition staff. Our expedition leader, Anja Erdmann had forewarned us that windy South Georgia weather and high sea swells could easily reduce the number of South Georgia outings she envisioned by half. However, by carefully mapping out a journey that moved us up and down the eastern South Georgia coastline, we were able to take advantage of sheltered harbors and coves. Through this approach, we were able to make twelve excursions during our South Georgia visit.
St Andrews Bay, Zodiac Landing: This area hosts a colony of over 200,000 breeding pairs of King Penguins, perhaps the largest colony in South Georgia.
Fortuna Bay, Zodiac Landing: Shackleton’s small party made its final hike from Fortuna Bay to the Stromness Bay whaling station. Guests could take recreate this historic hike that included a slide down an ice flow towards Stromness Bay.
Stromness Bay, Zodiac Landing: Keeping 200 meters from the former whaling station due to asbestos and metal hazards, we viewed the work buildings, wharfs and housing areas of the whaling station. Once again there were many fur seals and elephant seals along the shoreline.
Cooper’s Bay, Zodiac Landing: Hiking up a steep hill, we were able to view a small Macaroni penguin colony
Drygalski Fjord, Ship Cruise: Aboard the Sea Spirit, we entered this seven-mile fjord to the Risting glacier. The fjord, lined by sharp pointed and snow capped mountains and glaciers reminded us of Antarctica.
Larsen Harbour, Drygalski Fjord, Zodiac Cruise: Stopping about 2.5 miles from the mouth of the fjord, we loaded into zodiacs and traveled through the 2.6 mile inlet of volcanic rocks and ice sheets. Weddell seals and South Georgia Pipets were observed from the zodiacs.
Grytviken, Zodiac Landing: This settlement was founded as a whaling station in 1904 by Carl Anton Larsen. Whaling operations ceased in 1964. We visited graveyard where Shackleton and other early South Georgia pioneers are buried. We also walked to Shackleton Memorial, received guided tour of former whaling station and visited the South Georgia museum.
Prion Island, Zodiac Landing: We had 6:30am outing at this special protected area to view the nesting area of wandering albatross. A boardwalk and viewing platforms were constructed by the South Georgia government to prevent visitors from damaging nesting areas. The number of visitors using the walkways was limited to 50 at any time.
Salisbury Plain, Zodiac Landing: This was our final South Georgia excursion on this coastal plain in the Bay of Isles. Known for hosting about 30,000 breeding pairs of King Penguins, elephant and fur seals were abundant on the beach
Sea Conditions on This Trip
Such expeditions are the result of a well-planned strategy developed between the ship captain, the expedition leader and the expedition staff. Our expedition leader, Anja Erdmann had forewarned us that windy South Georgia weather and high sea swells could easily reduce the number of South Georgia outings she envisioned by half. However, by carefully mapping out a journey that moved us up and down the eastern South Georgia coastline, we were able to take advantage of sheltered harbors and coves. Through this approach, we were able to make twelve excursions during our South Georgia visit.
Where exactly did we stop in South Georgia? Almost all of our excursion activities were focused on visiting areas conducive to zodiac landings. Depending on the particular site, these shoreline landings could allow us to hike, view historic whaling and sealing areas or observe wildlife from intimate viewing locations. If we were lucky, one landing area allowed us to do all three. The other two excursions were focused on either a ship or zodiac cruise through a fjord to view mountains with cragged peaks, glaciers, ice caves, birds and sea mammals from a floating perspective. Below is a list of locations, along with
abbreviated descriptions of excursion highlight.
Godthul, Zodiac Landing: At this stop, we hiked through hills lined with tussock grass to view Gentoo penguin colony and nesting albatross. Godthul was a former small base for South Georgia whalers and sealers.
Ocean Harbour, Zodiac Landing: We were able to walk amidst a former whaling station. The station was operational between 1909 and 1920. We also observed birds and seals, including a newly born fur seal calf. The wreck of the iron hulled three masted Bayard lies in shallow waters at Ocean Harbour. This ship was built in 1864 and became loose from its mooring during a gale in 1911. At that time, the Bayard was used as a coaling ship.
Gold Harbour, Zodiac Landing: This site provided us with views of many elephant and fur seals
Godthul, Zodiac Landing: At this stop, we hiked through hills lined with tussock grass to view Gentoo penguin colony and nesting albatross. Godthul was a former small base for South Georgia whalers and sealers.
Ocean Harbour, Zodiac Landing: We were able to walk amidst a former whaling station. The station was operational between 1909 and 1920. We also observed birds and seals, including a newly born fur seal calf. The wreck of the iron hulled three masted Bayard lies in shallow waters at Ocean Harbour. This ship was built in 1864 and became loose from its mooring during a gale in 1911. At that time, the Bayard was used as a coaling ship.
Gold Harbour, Zodiac Landing: This site provided us with views of many elephant and fur seals
St Andrews Bay, Zodiac Landing: This area hosts a colony of over 200,000 breeding pairs of King Penguins, perhaps the largest colony in South Georgia.
Fortuna Bay, Zodiac Landing: Shackleton’s small party made its final hike from Fortuna Bay to the Stromness Bay whaling station. Guests could take recreate this historic hike that included a slide down an ice flow towards Stromness Bay.
Stromness Bay, Zodiac Landing: Keeping 200 meters from the former whaling station due to asbestos and metal hazards, we viewed the work buildings, wharfs and housing areas of the whaling station. Once again there were many fur seals and elephant seals along the shoreline.
Cooper’s Bay, Zodiac Landing: Hiking up a steep hill, we were able to view a small Macaroni penguin colony
Drygalski Fjord, Ship Cruise: Aboard the Sea Spirit, we entered this seven-mile fjord to the Risting glacier. The fjord, lined by sharp pointed and snow capped mountains and glaciers reminded us of Antarctica.
Larsen Harbour, Drygalski Fjord, Zodiac Cruise: Stopping about 2.5 miles from the mouth of the fjord, we loaded into zodiacs and traveled through the 2.6 mile inlet of volcanic rocks and ice sheets. Weddell seals and South Georgia Pipets were observed from the zodiacs.
Grytviken, Zodiac Landing: This settlement was founded as a whaling station in 1904 by Carl Anton Larsen. Whaling operations ceased in 1964. We visited graveyard where Shackleton and other early South Georgia pioneers are buried. We also walked to Shackleton Memorial, received guided tour of former whaling station and visited the South Georgia museum.
Prion Island, Zodiac Landing: We had 6:30am outing at this special protected area to view the nesting area of wandering albatross. A boardwalk and viewing platforms were constructed by the South Georgia government to prevent visitors from damaging nesting areas. The number of visitors using the walkways was limited to 50 at any time.
Salisbury Plain, Zodiac Landing: This was our final South Georgia excursion on this coastal plain in the Bay of Isles. Known for hosting about 30,000 breeding pairs of King Penguins, elephant and fur seals were abundant on the beach
How much wildlife did we observe during this trip? The answer is too many to list for this blog. That said, below is just a sample of
the most common birds and sea mammals we saw on this trip.
- Antarctic Tern
- Antarctic Fur Seals
- Black Browed, Grey Headed and Wandering Albatross
- Cape, Northern, Southern Giant Petrels
- Gentoo, King, Macaroni Magellanic and Rockhopper Penguins
- Kelp Gull
- South Georgia Cormorant
- Pale-Faced Sheatbill
- Sub-Antarctic Skua
- South Georgia Pipit
- Southern Elephant Seals
- Southern Right Whales
- Weddell Seals
- White Chinned and Wilson’s Storm Petrels
For those not familiar with Southern Elephant Seals, they are huge. The bull may weigh 5,000-9,000 pounds and have a length of 14 to 19 feet. The females may weigh up to 2,000 pounds and have a length of 8.5 to 10 feet. A large bull may have a 'harem' of several dozen females. Despite their large size, the Southern Elephant Seals can move with moderate speed and we always gave them wide berth when walking along the beach.
We also used caution when walking among Antarctic Fur Seals. We were warned by expedition staff that Fur Seals will bite if they are provoked or perceive being threatened. These bites are prone to infection and require a strong antibiotic regimen. Everyone paid close attention to the Fur Seals and avoided any confrontations.
We also used caution when walking among Antarctic Fur Seals. We were warned by expedition staff that Fur Seals will bite if they are provoked or perceive being threatened. These bites are prone to infection and require a strong antibiotic regimen. Everyone paid close attention to the Fur Seals and avoided any confrontations.
I have about 2,200 photos from this trip. I'm still in the process of reviewing the shots and weeding out those that need to be deleted. Below are just a few to share what visitors can see in South Georgia.
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| The slippery rocks on the bottom of this river and fast current made the crossing more challenging than it might look! |
Sea Conditions on This Trip
We thought the two-day crossing between the Falklands and South Georgia would be milder
than Drake Passage conditions but perhaps we were a little too optimistic. According to some expedition staff, the crossing between the Falklands and South Georgia can test one's capability to withstand Mal de Mer - otherwise known as sea sickness. We soon learned that the Southern Atlantic Ocean, between the Falklands and South Georgia, can be unpredictable.
The initial outbound trip had relatively mild sea swells as we left Puerto Madryn towards South Georgia via the Falklands. However, our return crossing from South Georgia to the Falklands experienced two days of 9 foot to 18 foot sea swells and high winds. Port holes were closed during this time and many passengers took sea sickness medication. Sleeping at night was a challenge as we rolled back and forth in our beds and, at times, felt like we were on a roller coaster. Passengers were cautioned to be careful walking in the halls and stairways and avoid walking on the exterior decks during this time. Needless to say, it was difficult to stand while taking a shower and several passengers missed a meal or two.
What did we do to avoid sea sickness? On a cruise a few years ago, we tried using the scopolamine patch for sea sickness but didn't like the 'dry mouth' side effect. In addition, I had some problems with scopolamine withdrawal symptoms after removing the patch. We've had better success with taking meclizine, an over the counter anti-histamine, to keep sea sickness at bay. However, you do need to take meclizine a few hours before the seas get too rough.
The initial outbound trip had relatively mild sea swells as we left Puerto Madryn towards South Georgia via the Falklands. However, our return crossing from South Georgia to the Falklands experienced two days of 9 foot to 18 foot sea swells and high winds. Port holes were closed during this time and many passengers took sea sickness medication. Sleeping at night was a challenge as we rolled back and forth in our beds and, at times, felt like we were on a roller coaster. Passengers were cautioned to be careful walking in the halls and stairways and avoid walking on the exterior decks during this time. Needless to say, it was difficult to stand while taking a shower and several passengers missed a meal or two.
What did we do to avoid sea sickness? On a cruise a few years ago, we tried using the scopolamine patch for sea sickness but didn't like the 'dry mouth' side effect. In addition, I had some problems with scopolamine withdrawal symptoms after removing the patch. We've had better success with taking meclizine, an over the counter anti-histamine, to keep sea sickness at bay. However, you do need to take meclizine a few hours before the seas get too rough.
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